After passing Bistro 25 a few times we decided to give it a try. The menu intrigued us as well as the owners' mission to have a casual but stylish restaurant with entrees under $20. There is tons to choose from with their small plates, entrees and sandwiches. Sounds good to us! When we first entered, we were joyfully greeted and set up with two high chairs (yes we brought the kiddos along!) and sat in a corner where we had plenty of room and we wouldn't disturb anyone in case our kids acted up!

Although I didn't see their private dining room for parties, I did get a good look around the place. When you walk in you immediately see the hostess stand. Behind which, is the large bar. To the left is a dining room with regular tables towards the front and high tops in the back, adjacent to the bar. Through that dining room is the main dining room, where we sat. Decor is basic with wall art and sconces, nothing special. Unfortunately I have to say that bathroom did not have a changing table. I just don't understand places that accommodate half way.

Our server came over, told us the specials and took our drink orders. We decided on what we wanted and it took a little longer than expected for her to come back to take our order. Throughout the night she was pretty slow and really seemed like she was unhappy with her job and didn't want to be there. Not exactly good for business, I'd say. At least she didn't mess up our order or give us an attitude or anything. For those reasons, service gets a 5.

We were given some seasoned bread sticks while waiting for our food. They were soft in some spots, hard as a rock in others. The flavor was good, almost like garlic bread. I blame the shape for the inconsistency in texture (I put the picture so you get the idea). They would probably be more enjoyable if they weren't as thin and half the length. I did like soaking up the sauce that came with the Smoked Mozzarella-Ricotta fritters though, which were different, but very good. For our entrees I had the Pan Seared Crab Cakes, served with a roasted corn and black bean salad (typical) with frisee, lemon aioli (also typical) and a tomato jam (not so typical!) The combination of everything was very good! I don't really like tomatoes and the jam gave a perfect sweetness that was needed to bring it all together. The crab cakes were excellent quality with tons of crab. I could barely finish the 3rd cake (it was just a lot of crab for me but I'm sure most would finish it.) My husband ordered the Burgundy Braised Short Ribs served with horseradish whipped potatoes, baby carrots and mushrooms. The burgundy created a sweet flavor for the very tender meat. We both agree that the potatoes were a bit strange. We weren't expecting an in-your-face horseradish taste, rather a hint of horseradish. They weren't bad, but they weren't a great pairing for the sweet meat. Perhaps they would be better off with a nice seared steak, but not braised short ribs. For dessert, we tried the Creme Brulee and Carrot Cake Bread Pudding. The creme brulee tasted very eggy, almost sulfuric. If it were up to me, I would have sent it back. The bread pudding was plated very nicely and not at all how I expected, with a small round of bread pudding on the right, a smear of caramel in the middle topped with the crumble and a quenelle of cream cheese ice cream to the left. I didn't necessarily care for the bread pudding. The consistency was a little off for me and it was very small but I could eat bowls and bowls of that ice cream! Any description I give can't even do it justice! Having that on the plate definitely helped elevate the bread pudding.

Overall, between the somewhat-lacking service, leaning on the small side with the portions for dessert, and inconsistency with food quality due to certain aspects being great and others not so great, this restaurant was just okay for us. Better service would have made a world of difference. We really are on the fence with this place. IF there is a next time, we might order a bit differently.